Hydroperoxides are useful for many applications in industry such as in the SBR rubber industry to initiate the polymerization of rubber. A purge stream of hydroperoxide is produced during the production of hydroquinone from p-diisopropylbenzene (DIPB) using air oxidation. This purge stream of hydroperoxides is a waste stream containing many compounds and contaminants and is presently disposed of by incineration.
During production of hydroquinone from DIPB using air oxidation, the monohydroperoxide of p-diisopropylbenzene (MHP) is produced and re circulated until it forms the dihydroperoxide of p-diisopropylbenzene (DHP). The DHP is extracted from the loop in a mixer/settler using weak caustic. The organic phase overflows from the mixer/settler and is recycled back to the oxidizers and thus contains dispersed and dissolved water. During this oxidation reaction, unwanted carbinols and other impurities are produced which must be purged. The purge stream is taken from the MHP loop and is presently cleaved with acid and burned in an incinerator. This purge stream is a crude water-wet organic stream of MHP and is composed of about 50% MHP, 25% DIPB, the remainder being dissolved and dispersed water, carbinols, other unwanted hydroperoxides, and dispersed solids. This crude water-wet organic stream of MHP is saturated with water at 55.degree. C. and contains greater than 2 wt % water and is cloudy in appearance. This crude water-wet organic stream of MHP is not suitable as a feed for any useful reaction since it contains impurities and is a heterogenous mixture that separates into two liquid phases over time. However, if the purity of this stream could be dramatically improved, it would be useful for example as a polymerization initiator for the rubber industry.
It would be very desirable to produce a more pure homogeneous phase from the crude water-wet organic stream of MHP to be useful as a feed for industry such as a polymerization initiator for the rubber industry.
This crude water-wet organic stream of MHP could be purified by distillation or dehydrated by vacuum stripping. However, the temperature required for distillation and/or vacuum stripping exceeds 70.degree. C. and the initiation of a runaway reaction commences at 90.degree. C. Therefore, the distillation or vacuum stripping of this crude water-wet organic stream of MHP is very dangerous even under vacuum since a loss of vacuum could suddenly raise the temperature and start a runaway reaction resulting in an explosion.
Attempts at freezing the dispersed/dissolved water followed by filtration is not possible due to the extremely high viscosity of the chilled stream which consists mostly of MHP.
Attempts were also made at removing the dispersed water simply by coalescing the crude water-wet organic stream of MHP, however, the resulting product from this coalescence forms two phases after a freeze/thaw cycle and is unacceptable for use in feed streams.
The use of drying agents such as silica gel, molecular sieves, or other hydroscopic materials to purify and remove all the water from the stream is not possible since these agents or materials must, due to the economics, be regenerated by heating to remove the extracted water. This is unacceptable for safety reasons since the MHP adhering to the drying agents would cause a runaway reaction during regeneration.
It would be very desirable to be able to economically and safely purify the crude water-wet organic stream of MHP avoiding the above problems.